Now that Ondrej Pavelec has silenced many of his critics by delivering his best season as a starting goalie, he must quickly turn his attention to some uncharted territory.

Thanks in part to his brilliant play during the stretch run, which included going 187 minutes and five seconds without giving up a goal during the final three games and change, the Winnipeg Jets goalie is set for his first taste of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The Jets meet the Anaheim Ducks in a first-round battle that is set to open in California on Thursday and Pavelec is going back to the post-season for the first time since 2008, when he helped lead the Chicago Wolves to a Calder Cup championship.

During that run, Pavelec finished the post-season with a record of 16-8 with a 2.34 goals against average and .921 save percentage.

Numbers have always been a tricky subject when it comes to assessing Pavelec's play but for the sake of comparison, Pavelec finished this season with a record of 22-16-8, a 2.28 goals against average and .920 save percentage in 50 appearances.

Playing well in the American Hockey League playoffs isn't the same as leading a team to the Stanley Cup obviously, but to suggest Pavelec hasn't been under the heat lamp or faced a great deal of scrutiny would be wildly inaccurate.

And if Pavelec provides anything close to the level he performed at during the stretch run, he'll give the Jets a chance in what figures to be an exciting series against the Ducks, who finished first in the Western Conference with 51 wins and 109 points.

“No one's had to go through as much adversity as he has,” said Jets centre Bryan Little. “There was a time when a whole lot of people believed they should ship him out or he wasn't even a starting goaltender in the NHL. Without him, I don't think we would have gotten to the point where we are right now. He's really put the team on his back and played some of the best hockey I've ever seen him play.”

There's no doubt that this has been the most challenging season of Pavelec's career.

Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff raised some eyebrows at the year-end meeting last April by declaring that Pavelec was the No. 1 guy moving forward, despite the fact a good chunk of fans and various media members were calling for him to be given a compliance buyout.

Pavelec worked harder in the off-season and seemed to come to training camp in a more refreshed state of mind.

But after a pretty steady start, Pavelec's play dropped off a bit and he had trouble getting in the win column.

Coupled with the strong play of Michael Hutchinson, Pavelec went from what was basically a rotation situation to watching the rookie start eight consecutive games.

However, since allowing the long goal from St. Louis Blues defenceman Barret Jackman to ruin an otherwise brilliant relief performance on Mar. 10, Pavelec has been nearly impenetrable, going 9-2-1 since Mar. 14, when he was back in goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

“He deserves it, with the way he works,” said Jets winger Chris Thorburn. “Down the stretch here, he was our best player. I'm so happy for him to get the opportunity.”

Four of Pavelec's career-high five shutouts down came during his final nine starts of the season.

“It’s amazing. He’s been playing some incredible hockey these last few games down the stretch. It’s perfect,” said Hutchinson, who helped the St. John's IceCaps reach the Calder Cup final last spring. “You need a goalie to get hot at this time of year and that’s exactly what he’s done. It’s always fun when you watch your goalie partner take off like that and have a run as special as that.”

Those numbers go out the window come Thursday, though the confidence Pavelec has built in himself and his teammates will remain.

“He's been stellar during this last month or so,” said Jets captain Andrew Ladd. “Going back to the game in St. Louis ...to be able to come back from that, mentally, it shows how tough he is. He's been exceptional. It's exciting going into the playoffs with a goaltender like that.”

Can Pavelec keep up his strong play during the post-season?

That remains to be seen, but it won't take much longer to find out.

ken.wiebe@sunmedia.ca

Ondrej Pavelec: by the numbers

50 GP, 22-16-8, 5 SO, 2.28 GAA, .920 save%

Established career-bests for shutouts, GAA and save% this season while playing the lowest total of games in a full season since 2009-10 when he was with the Atlanta Thrashers.

For sake of comparison, Pavelec played in 44 of 48 games for Jets during the 2012-13 NHL lockout season.

Pavelec went 16-8 with two shutouts, a 2.28 goals against average and .921 save percentage to lead the Chicago Wolves to a Calder Cup championship in the American Hockey League playoffs in 2008, which was his last post-season experience.